Ben (v2) narxBEN

U.S. President Donald Trump has granted pardons to three co-founders and executives of the cryptocurrency exchange BitMEX. This groundbreaking development comes years after the trio pleaded guilty to financial crimes related to the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA). According to a CNBC report , Arthur Hayes, Benjamin Delo, and Samuel Reed, who co-founded digital asset firm BitMEX, were granted a presidential pardon on Friday, March 28th, 2025 As noted in our previous post, Arthur Hayes and Ben Delo pleaded guilty to violating the Bank Secrecy Act while at BitMEX’s helm. Each agreed to pay $10 million in penalties. Similarly, BitMEX was found guilty of operating without the necessary compliance measures with the right authorities. The trading firm was charged for illegal financial transactions on its platform. In addition, federal prosecutors stated that despite publicly claiming to restrict U.S. users, the exchange continued to serve them during the period it was charged for. A US District Judge pronounced a $100 million fine on the company earlier this year, concluding the case. Likewise, the founders and executives received different sentences, including probation alongside financial penalties. As we covered in our latest report, BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes was sentenced to six months of home confinement in May 2022, along with a two-year probation. Delo and Reed also received probation as part of their penance. With President Trump’s pardon, these BitMEX founders are now free from any legal consequences tied to their convictions. Following the presidential pardons, reactions in the digital asset community remain contentious. For example, supporters of the BitMEX executives argue that they were unfairly targeted and that enforcing financial regulations in the cryptocurrency industry has been inconsistent. Other community members believe the charges were necessary to uphold legal standards in digital finance. The US Department of Justice (DoJ) had maintained that BitMEX knowingly failed to comply with financial laws. Officials highlighted that the company’s lack of oversight created opportunities for illegal activities, which could have been prevented with proper policies. The case had been closely watched within the cryptocurrency industry, as it set a precedent for how regulators handle compliance failures in digital asset exchanges. In related news, Hawk Tuah girl Hailey Welch, popular for her connection with the controversial $HAWK token, has been cleared of wrongdoing after a lengthy investigation by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Meanwhile, Under President Donald Trump, regulatory trends around crypto have improved. As we mentioned in our previous news brief, the US SEC has dismissed its case with Ripple Labs, with the firm also closing its counter-appeal. Like Ripple, Coinbase, Uniswap, and Robinhood, among other firms, have also seen their respective legal cases closed.

Ya ben was a shot caller for alot of years, made tons off him in my early days, sad to see, im a big bitboy fan

The digital trail of the massive Bybit hack is getting clearer, revealing the hacker’s elaborate efforts to launder the stolen 500,000 ETH (worth a staggering $1.23 billion). The pilfered ETH was converted into 12,836 BTC and then scattered across a jaw-dropping 9,117 wallets, averaging just 1.41 BTC per wallet. To further muddy the waters and ensure anonymity, the attacker employed crypto mixers like Wasabi, CryptoMixer, Railgun, and TornadoCash. Related: FBI: North Korea’s “TraderTraitor” Gang Behind $1.5B Bybit Hack Despite these intricate maneuvers designed to obscure the funds, investigators have managed to trace a significant 88.87% of the stolen cryptocurrency, offering a glimmer of hope for recovery. However, a frustrating 7.59% of the funds have vanished without a trace, adding a layer of complexity to the ongoing investigations. In response, Bybit has swiftly frozen 3.54% of the stolen funds, amounting to 17,700 ETH worth nearly $35 million, preventing any further movement. This rapid action was made possible through quick collaboration with other exchanges and blockchain analysis firms. Bybit CEO, Ben Zhou, has issued a direct appeal to the crypto community, urging anyone with insights to assist in deciphering the complex layers of mixer transactions. Bybit’s security team has flagged the increasing use of Bitcoin mixers as a major obstacle in their recovery efforts. Decoding these transactions has now become the platform’s top priority. Just as Zhou emphasized in his post, “After mixer the funds went to various p2p vendors. We believe this trend will grow as more funds will go through mixers. Decoding mixer transactions is the number one challenge we face now. If you can help, please reach out.” Related: Bybit CEO: $1.4 Billion Crypto Hack Tracked, Majority Potentially Recoverable To expedite the process of tracking down the remaining funds, Bybit has put out bounties for individuals who can provide actionable intelligence. Over the past 30 days, the exchange has received a total of 5,012 bounty reports, with 63 of them deemed valid and providing useful leads. Disclaimer: The information presented in this article is for informational and educational purposes only. The article does not constitute financial advice or advice of any kind. Coin Edition is not responsible for any losses incurred as a result of the utilization of content, products, or services mentioned. Readers are advised to exercise caution before taking any action related to the company.

Blockchain sleuth ZachXBT slammed pseudo decentralized protocols for profiting from North Korea-backed exploits. The crypto industry’s handling of hacks and shady activity is coming under fire, with blockchain sleuth ZachXBT calling out several pseudo- decentralized protocols for profiting from North Korea -linked exploits while avoiding responsibility. In a Telegram post on Tuesday, March 18, the crypto investigator called the nearly $1.5 billion Bybit hack “eye opening,” warning that the industry’s security problems might not improve without government regulations that could “hurt our entire industry.” Per ZachXBT, several “decentralized” protocols have generated nearly all of their monthly volume and fees from transactions linked to North Korea. Despite this, the investigator notes, they “refuse to take any accountability.” ZachXBT’s comments seem to point to mixing service eXch and multi-currency protocol THORChain, among others, which profited after North Korean bad actors funneled stolen Bybit funds through them in an attempt to launder. As crypto.news reported earlier, less than two weeks after the heist, Bybit CEO Ben Zhou stated that more than $200 million of the $1.46 billion stolen from the exchange had become untraceable, partly due to mixing services refusing to halt North Korean hackers. ZachXBT also pointed to centralized exchanges, stating that some take “multiple hours” to respond to illicit funds moving through their platforms, even though laundering “only takes minutes.” It’s unclear which exchanges the investigator was referring to. Criticizing existing security measures, he argued that know your transaction systems are “completely flawed and easily evadable,” while know your customer rules mostly serve as a “honeypot for regular users” due to frequent breaches and insider leaks. In late February, North Korean hackers targeted Bybit, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges, stealing around $1.46 billion worth of crypto in a highly sophisticated heist. The attack was reportedly carried out by compromising the computer of an employee at Safe, Bybit’s technology provider.

Canadian Bitcoin miner Bitfarms has finalized the acquisition of Stronghold Digital Mining, marking the largest-ever merger between two publicly listed Bitcoin mining companies. According to a press release published on March 17, Bitfarms has completed the all-stock acquisition of Stronghold Digital Mining. The merger was approved on Feb. 28, with 99.6% of votes cast voting in favor, representing about 54.5% of Stronghold’s outstanding shares. Bitfarms acquired Stronghold through a stock-for-stock merger, with Stronghold shareholders receiving 2.52 Bitfarms shares for each Stronghold share they owned. Nearly 60 million Bitfarms shares and over 10.5 million warrants were issued as part of the deal. Stronghold’s stock was removed from Nasdaq and stopped trading. Bitfarms’ stock opened higher Monday morning but lost any buying momentum and was trading lower by around 1% during the early afternoon session. With Stronghold now fully integrated into Bitfarms, the mining giant has expanded its energy capacity to 623 megawatts — including existing power generation and grid import capacity in Pennsylvania. Additionally, Bitfarms now manages nearly 1 more Exahash of computing power, bringing its total to 18 Exahash. A previous agreement where Stronghold hosted miners for others is now being used for Bitfarms’ direct mining operations. Bitfarms also sees potential to convert two Stronghold power sites into large-scale AI and computing hubs, with plans to partner with industry players to develop these facilities. “With Stronghold’s portfolio of power assets, combined with our operational expertise and balance sheet strength, we are well positioned to create long-term value for our shareholders by executing on our US strategy and developing an HPC/AI business geared for scale, ” said Ben Gagnon, Chief Executive Officer of Bitfarms. In addition to increasing its power assets, the acquisition has boosted Bitfarms’ share of the North American energy market from 6% to 80%.